Descended from painters and musicians, Anita Pallenberg had art flowing through her veins and shooting out of her fingertips. Between immersing herself in the Dolce Vita crowd of Rome, her time as a Warhol Factory member, modeling in Paris, studying both humanities and sciences, starring in Italian, French, and German films alike, inspiring the Stones’ psychedelic/ experimental era, being the rock during the Exile period at Nellcote, inspiring countless hits (Gimme Shelter, You Can’t Always Get What You Want, You Got the Silver, to name just a few), letting Keith steal her clothes (and essentially her entire essence), raising kids on the road, casually becoming an expert skier in the midst of a heroin addiction while living in the Swiss Alps  … this woman lived so many lives. 

All of the groupies wanted to be her. Even the rockstars wanted to be her! There will never be another. As Keith said, “We’re talking about a one-off here.”

Descended from painters and musicians, Anita Pallenberg had art flowing through her veins and shooting out of her fingertips. Between immersing herself in the Dolce Vita crowd of Rome, her time as a Warhol Factory member, modeling in Paris, studying both humanities and sciences, starring in Italian, French, and German films alike, inspiring the Stones’ psychedelic/ experimental era, being the rock during the Exile period at Nellcote, inspiring countless hits (Gimme Shelter, You Can’t Always Get What You Want, You Got the Silver, to name just a few), letting Keith steal her clothes (and essentially her entire essence), raising kids on the road, casually becoming an expert skier in the midst of a heroin addiction while living in the Swiss Alps  … this woman lived so many lives. 

All of the groupies wanted to be her. Even the rockstars wanted to be her! There will never be another. As Keith said, “We’re talking about a one-off here.”

kind of whack editing…but crazy interesting subject matter duhh

kind of whack editing…but crazy interesting subject matter duhh

I think that even if you’re a classic rock fan, you’ll hear the name Anita Pallenberg, it raises eyebrows.

This film gives true insight into who Anita really was through people who really knew her, childhood friends, her kids, Keith.

She was more than the rockstars girlfriend, she was a model, an actress, a mother. And this film really fleshed out who she was as a person.

As a little bit of a Rolling Stones fan, I only really knew surface level info on Anita, like yes, the fact that she was with Brian, then she got with Keith and her brief fling with Mick.

But I didn’t know that she was in BARBARELLA, or the “Deer Hunter” thing.

She was a fascinating character that people will continue to talk about, whether that is in a positive or negative light. And I commend her for that.

I think that even if you’re a classic rock fan, you’ll hear the name Anita Pallenberg, it raises eyebrows.

This film gives true insight into who Anita really was through people who really knew her, childhood friends, her kids, Keith.

She was more than the rockstars girlfriend, she was a model, an actress, a mother. And this film really fleshed out who she was as a person.

As a little bit of a Rolling Stones fan, I only really knew surface level info on Anita, like yes, the fact that she was with Brian, then she got with Keith and her brief fling with Mick.

But I didn’t know that she was in BARBARELLA, or the “Deer Hunter” thing.

She was a fascinating character that people will continue to talk about, whether that is in a positive or negative light. And I commend her for that.

she served cunt till the day she died

she served cunt till the day she died

mmm my spark notes after my first watch:

- it was good! i really liked it! loved hearing her story and being able to fit it in between others accounts of the same events. the archival footage was a really great bonus too, as you really almost felt like you knew the family by the end, incredibly intimate. i think her voice is so important in contextualizing so much of the stones history, and one that has been sorely needed in really understanding certain ins and outs of the band, their dynamics, and their music. 

- by the same account, i feel as though you really need nuance to understand and watch the film through the appropriate lens. obviously, being anita’s story, it’s skewed towards anita’s perspectives on things. to watch the film is to understand you are seeing an image of anita that has already been slightly altered by time. there’s no discussion of her fascination with nazi propaganda [which is documented elsewhere and widely common knowledge on her], her violent outbursts and manipulative behavior are explained away [also documented rather widely]. obviously these things were inner circle knowledge for a long time, and in the past ten to twenty years have come out for the wider public to know, so her lack of acknowledgment towards them is to be understood - they aren’t flattering and can’t be explained away [even if that’s attempted]. 

it becomes very telling about a third through when keith richards speaks of her outbursts rather openly [unlike his book where they were almost hidden away though there if read between the lines], saying she’d throw things if he has asked her to talk or calm down that his voice over remains pretty much absent after that. its more telling than not, and would paint an even broader, much deeper picture of the woman at the heart of the story. keith clearly remains positive on her, but he feels trapped in her story like he had been and she to his. it almost perpetrated this cycle they were caught in, which would’ve been an interesting discussion in the documentary: does a woman’s importance hinge on her being a good person? if it doesn’t for a man - why for a woman? but instead you’re caught almost feeling bad for keith, even if the documentary is trying to eliminate sympathy toward him.

i loved it for finally hearing anita speak on the world she was so instrumental in creating as her own. i think it’s valuable to hear about such a complex and singular woman through her own words, pictures, and videos. i will also be revisiting quite soon, i know that. i think she has an amazing knack for style in her work that make it so engaging and almost intoxicating, drawing you back. one of the most interesting and honest reflections on the stones era that has been given, from someone in the center of the nucleus. i almost wish it was just more of her perspective as opposed to others accounts of what happened around her. but that’s just first watch, maybe i’ll feel different in a while. i still really liked it though !!

mmm my spark notes after my first watch:

- it was good! i really liked it! loved hearing her story and being able to fit it in between others accounts of the same events. the archival footage was a really great bonus too, as you really almost felt like you knew the family by the end, incredibly intimate. i think her voice is so important in contextualizing so much of the stones history, and one that has been sorely needed in really understanding certain ins and outs of the band, their dynamics, and their music. 

- by the same account, i feel as though you really need nuance to understand and watch the film through the appropriate lens. obviously, being anita’s story, it’s skewed towards anita’s perspectives on things. to watch the film is to understand you are seeing an image of anita that has already been slightly altered by time. there’s no discussion of her fascination with nazi propaganda [which is documented elsewhere and widely common knowledge on her], her violent outbursts and manipulative behavior are explained away [also documented rather widely]. obviously these things were inner circle knowledge for a long time, and in the past ten to twenty years have come out for the wider public to know, so her lack of acknowledgment towards them is to be understood - they aren’t flattering and can’t be explained away [even if that’s attempted]. 

it becomes very telling about a third through when keith richards speaks of her outbursts rather openly [unlike his book where they were almost hidden away though there if read between the lines], saying she’d throw things if he has asked her to talk or calm down that his voice over remains pretty much absent after that. its more telling than not, and would paint an even broader, much deeper picture of the woman at the heart of the story. keith clearly remains positive on her, but he feels trapped in her story like he had been and she to his. it almost perpetrated this cycle they were caught in, which would’ve been an interesting discussion in the documentary: does a woman’s importance hinge on her being a good person? if it doesn’t for a man - why for a woman? but instead you’re caught almost feeling bad for keith, even if the documentary is trying to eliminate sympathy toward him.

i loved it for finally hearing anita speak on the world she was so instrumental in creating as her own. i think it’s valuable to hear about such a complex and singular woman through her own words, pictures, and videos. i will also be revisiting quite soon, i know that. i think she has an amazing knack for style in her work that make it so engaging and almost intoxicating, drawing you back. one of the most interesting and honest reflections on the stones era that has been given, from someone in the center of the nucleus. i almost wish it was just more of her perspective as opposed to others accounts of what happened around her. but that’s just first watch, maybe i’ll feel different in a while. i still really liked it though !!